Not Myself
by Star2717
Summary: Everyone thinks that they know everything about Alicia Spinnet. And everyone's about to find out how wrong they really are. Featuring love, humor, quidditch, and angst later on.
1. On the Platform

            I shoved my trunk onto the carriage designated "Trunks" by the sign that was enchanted to float right above it.  I sighed and brushed the dust off of my hands onto my kilt.  Let's see.  My mother and sister were driving away from King's Cross station, having said their obligatory family goodbyes.  My gazillion ton trunk was loaded into the appropriate carriage.  I was neatly dressed in my school uniform, my robes folded up in my bag so that I could put them on before the train arrived at school.  Yes, all was in order.  As I watched students mill around the platform, the bottom of my stomach began to churn.  It was almost time for the train to leave – where in the hell were my friends?

            As if my thoughts had been broadcast out loud, I heard a deep male voice, tinged with a distinctively Scottish accent, cut through the crowd.

            "ALICA!!  ALICIA!!  Get over here!  What, do I have to get naked to get your attention?"

            I grinned and began to push aside people as I hurried down the platform.  Sure enough, as I finally managed to struggle through a crowd of confused looking first years, I was rewarded with the sight of Lee Jordan standing in a patch of sunlight.  He gave me a huge grin and opened his arms as I ran towards him to give him a hug.

            "How the hell are you?" he asked, lifting me off the ground.  I was so happy to see him that all I could manage at first was just to smile into his shirt and hug him tighter.  Finally, he set me down.  He folded his arms over his chest and, still grinning, looked me up and down with an appraising sort of eye.  I immediately imitated his behavior, noticing that not only were his dreadlocks a little longer, but that he had gotten even taller.

            "Well, well, well," he said, placing his hands on my shoulders, "Somebody hasn't sent me an owl in a month."

            "I know!  I know!  And I'm really sorry!  I meant to, right after your birthday party.  I had the best of intentions.  Seriously.  Right after I got back from your house, I was all set to grab a quill and start writing.  But then, things began to happen, and I got sidetracked, and before I knew it I – " I was cut off by Lee placing his hand over my mouth.

            "Al, you're doing that thing again. That blabbering thing.  Weren't we working on that?"

            I just smiled.  I couldn't help it.  I was just too happy to see Lee.  Let me explain.  Lee has been my best friend (ok, my best guy friend) since my first day of Hogwarts.  I was only eleven and terrified out of my mind.  While everyone else was becoming friends and having fun, I was sitting in the common room, confused as to everything that was going on.  I had been scared by a giant squid, talked to by a hat, nearly fallen off of a moving staircase, and just as I began to relax in a chair by the fire, some ghost had dropped water balloons on my head.  Just when I thought that I would start to cry, a scrawny kid with the beginnings dredlocks had suddenly appeared in front of me.

            "Wanna see my tarantula?" he said to me.  His voice was quiet, barely above a whisper, but it was the first time that someone had been nice to me all day.  Wordlessly, I followed him to see the tarantula, and since that day, Lee and I had been pretty much inseparable.  There was even a point during our fourth year when we thought our feelings might range beyond friendship, but we had sorted that out pretty quickly.  I can say with all honesty that Lee pretty much made me the person that I am today.  While I'm still shy around big groups of people, he convinced me that it was okay to let people hear me.  He was the one who told me I was a perfectly good flier and that I should try out for the quidditch team.  Lee was the first person in a long time to believe in me.  What did I do for Lee, you might ask yourself?  Well, actually, I did a pretty nice thing for Lee.  I set him up with his girlfriend.  Speaking of which – 

            "Where's Katie?" I asked, turning around so I could survey the melee going on behind me.

            "She's coming," said Lee, moving so that he was standing beside me.  "She had to pick up Angelina first, so she'll be a little late."  He paused for a moment, turning his head so he was looking down at me.  "How was your summer?  Seriously."

            "Seriously?"  I looked up at him, trying to read the expression on his face.  "It was fine.  I mean, you know, the usual crap, but fine.  I've had worse."

            "Alright," said Lee, rather quietly.  "Just making sure.  I like to know that you're fine."

            I smiled back at Lee, enjoying our little moment.

            "JORDAN!!!!!"

            So much for a moment.

            "Get your arse over here!!  C'mon, show your best friends in the whole wide world a little love!"

            Lee and I grinned at each other and began to walk towards the voice of Fred, or perhaps George, Weasley.  They were standing there, looking the same as ever, and as we approached them, my breath caught in my throat a little bit.  You see, the thing is, I have a tiny little crush on George.

            Ok.  To be perfectly honest, I have a Very Big Crush on George.  Picture this:  six foot two, red hair, freckles, brown eyes, muscles (I knew Beaters existed for a reason!), slightly baggy jeans, and a striped rugby jersey.  Yeah.  Plus sweet, charming, intelligent, funny – I could go on and on.  Last year, when Lee and Katie were dating, and Fred and Angelina had finally hooked up, I admitted to Katie and Angelina my feelings for George.  They were ecstatic.  They assured me that they had noticed so many signs that he felt the same way about me.  That he constantly flirted with me.  That he was just too shy to ask me out.  That I should just tell him how I feel.  So one day, I saw him in the library, and getting a flash of inspiration, I decided to tell him how I feel.  I walked up behind him just in time to hear him ask out Elise Glancy, a Ravenclaw in the year below us.  Luckily, I was able to escape before either one of them saw me.  Katie and Angelina were supportive friends, stealing me ice cream from the kitchens and making vows to hate George if I wanted them to.  But to be honest, I didn't want them to.  First of all, George was still all of our friends, and being cold towards him just would have made things awkward.  And second of all, despite assuring Angelina and Katie to the contrary, I still harbored feelings for George.  Seeing him standing there next to Fred, grin plastered on his face, all of those feelings came rushing back.  
            "Jordan!  Smashing to see you!" yelled Fred as he pounced on Lee.  George immediately followed suit and soon the three of them lay in a tangled heap on the ground.  I just watched as Lee attempted to push his way out.  

            "Alicia?  A little help?"  I heard his voice from under Fred's elbow.  

            Before I could respond, Fred and George had jumped up and were facing me with slightly evil grins on their faces.  Oh crap.  Now I knew what was coming.

            "Alicia!" cried George.

            "How could we be so rude as to not even say hello?" said Fred, as the twins began to advance towards me.  

            "In fact – " George paused as his grin became even wider.  "I think Alicia deserves a Weasley Bludger hello."  

            Oh this was not good.  Not good at all.  A few years ago, Oliver Wood, our old quidditch captain, had begun to refer to the twins as a "pair of human bludgers."  The twins, rather than being insulted, had taken this name to heart quite literally.

            "Guys, it's ok, really, a handshake would suffice…." My frantic stuttering was interrupted be Fred and George charging either side of me and crushing me with the force of well, bludgers.  Granted, I didn't mind George's arms wrapped around me, but I sure as hell could do without Fred's.  

            "Uh guys?  I can't really breathe," I managed to choke out.  A few moments later they released me, still grinning.  

            "So how was your summer?" I asked, before they could ask the same of me.  I didn't mind talking about that sort of stuff with Lee, but Fred and George were a different story.

            "Not too shabby," began George.  "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes is off to an excellent start due to an unexpected acquisition of funds.  We sabotaged Percy's work reports six times.  And Fred continued to either dream about Angelina, talk about Angelina, or snog Angelina."

            Fred grinned, not denying anything that George had said.  "Well, what George is omitting, is that his love life this summer was rather – "

            "ALICA!!!"  I heard my name screamed for the third time that morning, saving me from horrible mental images of George and Elise.  I turned and saw a beaming Katie sprinting towards me.  I began to jump up and down and scream.  Oh, come on, I'm allowed to be a girl sometimes.  Before I knew it, Angelina, Katie and I were all engulfed in a screaming, giggling huddle.  As we finally broke apart, we turned around to see the boys mocking us by doing the exact same thing.

            "Lee!  Is that a new lip gloss?"

            "Fred, you noticed!  And George, don't lie!  You've been getting high lights!"

            "Alright, I admit it!  You know they bring out my eyes!"

            "Humph!" said Angelina, as she linked her arm with one of mine.  "Just for that, Fred, you don't get a kiss!"

            "Same with you, Lee," said Katie, taking my other arm.  "We're going off to get a compartment and catch up on gossip with Alicia.  You three can get me and Angelina's trunks loaded onto the train and then come find us."  And with that, the three of us gracefully strolled off towards the train.

            By the time we plopped down in the carriage, we were giggling uncontrollably.  

            "Did you see the look on Lee's face!" yelled Katie.  "Oh this year is going to be amazing.  I can tell already.  I wonder if we'll have quidditch again this year?  And who'll be the captain?"

            "Yes, we will, and Angelina will be captain," I blurted out, before I could stop myself.  Angelina and Katie looked at each other and nodded.

            "So," said Angelina, crossing her legs Indian style and turning to face me.  "I take it your… special talent is still going strong?"

            I took a deep breath and decided to tell them about what had happened during the last week of summer, something I hadn't even told Lee.

            "Guys, you won't believe this…"


	2. Train Conversations

Disclaimer:  I forgot this in the first chapter, so this applies to both of my chapters.  I own nothing.  Nothing.  Except my muse and my lovely computer, which likes to freeze and kill off my muse.

A/N:  Thank you so much to my first reviewers ever: Marie, Cecilia Orechio, animegirl-mika, and one anonymous!  You guys were very sweet.  I hope to post to chapters at a rate of one every two to three days.  You'll have to forgive me if I sometimes get sidetracked with school!  This is my first fanfic, so any thoughts are welcome – praise, criticism, flames, whatever.  I have some ideas as to where this is going, but feel free to give me suggestions!  Ok, I'll let you read now…

Katie and Angelina were staring at me with excited looks on their faces.  I took a deep breath and continued.  

            "Ok.  So remember how I told you at Lee's party that I'd been having really vivid dreams since school let out?"

            They both nodded.

            "Well, as the summer went on, they got more and more vivid.  All I could ever remember, though, is the six of us just sitting around.  And we'd all just be sitting there, in perfect silence, and it was like there was so much to be said but no one was talking.  It was really creepy."

            "You had that dream all summer?" interjected Angelina.

            "Yeah.  Almost every night.  But then, about a week before the end of the summer, I had a – well, I really don't know what to call it.  A vision maybe?"

            Katie was looking at me, one eyebrow raised.  

"But Al, you've been having visions, since, well, forever.  What's so different?"  

            I sighed, trying to think of a way to explain.  Katie was right, in a sense.  Ever since I had started at Hogwarts, every so often, I would get "flashes" – little glimpses of the near future.  Nothing major – just stupid stuff.  Like I'd see that Katie was going to get top marks on her Transfiguration homework (although you didn't need any psychic ability to see that).  Or that Lee would forget to wear his tie to breakfast.  Little, petty things, but they persisted throughout my years.  Granted, it was creepy, but it had its benefits.  For one thing, I was top of the class in Divination.  No thanks to Professor Trelawney, of course – that old bat wouldn't see a vision if it smacked her in the face.  But what I had experienced that night only a few days ago hadn't been a flash.  Instead of a blurry glimpse that had only lasted a few seconds, this had been a full out color motion picture.  According to my sister, she had called my name for almost ninety seconds before I "snapped out of it" and responded.  I thought for a minute before speaking again.

            "Here's the thing.  I was working in the store, since Mum had to go do some out of town business for the afternoon.  Patti and I were running things, and it was pretty slow.  I remember that it was pretty slow, so I was just sitting there, staring at the register, and Patti was helping some lady who wanted to gift-wrap gillyweed.  And I was just sitting there, staring out the window, and then suddenly, I just wasn't there anymore.  I was in the Gryffindor common room, except that I somehow knew that I wasn't really there, that I was just kind of observing.  And I saw Fred.  And he was just sobbing.  Sitting there with his face buried in his hands and bawling.  And I saw you, Angelina; you came in to comfort him.  And you sat there, and you guys just held each other, and then you said to him – I distinctly remember this – you said to him, "I know George.  He'll be okay.  He'll get her back."  And then the next thing I know, Patti was yelling at me and snapping her fingers in front of my face.  I was freaked out beyond belief."

            Katie and Angelina just sat there in shocked silence.  

            "What do you think it means?" said Katie, finally.

            I shook my head in frustration.  "The only thing I could think of would be a repeat of what happened in fourth year… and I don't think any of us could handle that again."

            Angelina inhaled a sharp breath.  "You think Ginny will be kidnapped again?"

            I shrugged.  "George tried to go after her last time.  If he hadn't bumped into Professor McGonogall and been sent back to the common room, who knows what would have happened.  If he had gotten into the Chamber…  And especially with You-Know-Who coming into power again, what if someone tries to use Ginny to reopen the Chamber again?  George was crazy enough to go after her last time, no reason to think that he'd change.  I can't even imagine how terrible that would be…"

            I trailed off, letting them imagine the horrific possibilities.  Before we could further speculate, however, the door to the compartment burst open.  

            "Ladies," said Fred, with a dramatic bow.  Fred, George, and Lee sat down on the seat opposite from where us girls sat.  

            "Gee, did we interrupt a funeral?"  George surveyed the glum looks on our faces.

            "Actually, we were just talking about Elise.  So of course we had to get a look of depression and dismay going," fibbed Katie, using a tone icy enough to freeze over Hades.  I had to fight to hide a smile.  Angelina and Katie had agreed not to be mad at George, respecting my wishes, but that didn't mean that they didn't seize every free opportunity to insult his girlfriend.  You have to love having great friends.

            "Oh…" said George, looking down at the ground.

            "There, there George," said Fred, sympathetically patting his brother on the shoulder.  "Obviously you three dolts haven't heard the tragic news; otherwise, you wouldn't be hurting poor George like that."

            "What news?" said Angelina.  Lee shook his head in pity.

            "Er… I got an owl from Elise right before the end of summer.  She doesn't want to date anymore.  Apparently she met some Beaubaxtons boy while she was taking her holiday in France…" George had a look of sadness on his face, but I could swear that somewhere in there I saw a bit of relief, too.  

            "Thank goodness!  Finally!" Angelina grinned as if someone had just told her Snape had been fired.  Catching glares from the boys, she quickly backtracked.  "I mean, gosh, George, that's a tragedy.  Oh, well, you know, plenty of fish in the sea."

            George sighed.  "Yeah, something like that."  Fred and Lee shared a knowing glance while Angelina and Katie beamed at me.

            "Quit it!" I muttered under my breath.  The last thing I needed was for George to become suddenly observant in his stages of grief.

            "So!  Let's discuss happier things said Katie, reaching into her bag.  "Did everyone else figure out what subjects they're taking?  I made a chart so we can figure out what classes we all have together."

            We all stared at her blankly.

            "Katie, sweetheart," said Lee, reaching over to pat her knee, "We all know what classes we're taking with each other.  We always have Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, Astronomy, Herbology, Divination, and Defense Against the Dark Arts all together.  And then you and Angelina signed up for Advanced Care of Magical Creatures, and me, Fred, George, and Alicia all signed up for Advanced History of Magic."

            "And I don't envy you a bit," interjected Angelina.  "Hours of in depth study with Professor Binns.  Sounds like as much fun as giving Snape a pedicure."

            "Anyways," Lee continued, "We really don't need a chart."

            "I know."  Katie sighed and put the paper back in her bag.  "I'm just so anxious for school to begin.  I can't help myself from doing school like things."

            "Right then, the summer has made you go completely bonkers," remarked Fred, leaning back and folding his arms across his chest.

            "Oh come on!  You can't tell me that you're not the least bit excited."  Katie seemed shocked by the idea that schoolwork was something to dread rather than cherish.

            "Well, let's see."  Fred paused a moment.  "If you mean am I excited about classes, my answer is an empathetic hell no.  On the other hand, I'm excited about quidditch, playing pranks, going to Hogsmeade, spending time with my friends, and snogging my wonderful girlfriend."

            Angelina smiled while the rest of us made gagging noises.  

            "A sweet bit of sentiment from Fred Weasley," I commented dryly.  Fred shot me a sweet smile in return.

            "And the start of another year would not be complete without Alicia's biting sarcasm," he shot back.

            Before I could answer him, Lee held his hands up in the air.  The arguments between Fred and I were stuff of legend.

            "How about we save the vicious fighting at least until we get to the castle?"  He looked at Fred, then at me, and then back at Fred.  "I'll by you both something from the sweet cart if you shut up."  

            Fred and I nodded in agreement.  "Deal," I said.

            "Deal," added Fred.  

            "Look, why don't you boys go buy a bunch of stuff off of the cart?  We'll give you our money and tell you what we want," said Angelina, digging into her bag.

            "And why would we do that?" asked George, speaking for the first time since the subject of Elise had been brought up.

            "Because," I said, staring at him, "Guys are supposed to wait on girls hand and foot.  It's the natural order of things."

            "Ha!  There's a funny joke!" said Fred and George in unison.  There was a moment of silence before all of us cracked up. 

            "C'mon then," said Lee, standing up and motioning for the twins to do the same.  He held out his hand.  "Give us the money and we'll leave you to do girl talk, or whatever it is you three do when we're not around.  What do you want us to buy?"

            "Pumpkin pasties," said Angelina.

            "Bertie Bott's," said Katie.

            I looked up at Lee.  "Do you even have to ask?"

            "Nope," he grinned, and the boys filed out of the compartment.  The instant the door had shut behind them, Angelina and Katie let out a unified shriek.  

            "What!" I yelled, glancing back and forth at them.

            "You heard George!"  Angelina was practically jumping up and down with excitement.  "He and Elise aren't together anymore!  Now you can go after him again!  Oh, it'll be so perfect!  The six of us all paired off!  No more awkwardness!  Finally!"

            "Angelina, hold up!" I yelled.  "Just because George isn't with Elise anymore, doesn't mean that he wants to date me!"

            "Angelina never said that," Katie cut in.  "All she means is that now you have the opportunity to finish what you started last year."

            I sighed in frustration.  Privately, I would have loved to tell them how much I wanted George and I to become an item, but the last thing I needed was to get my hopes up and then have them brutally crushed.  "First off all, I'm not even sure that I like George anymore.  Second of all, there was nothing last year!  He doesn't like me!  Breaking up with his girlfriend won't change that."

            "Fine.  If you won't do something then about it, then Katie and I will just have to do something for you."  Angelina gave me a self-satisfied grin.  Katie nodded her agreement.

            "NO!  You wouldn't!"  One glance at their faces assured me that they most definitely would.  "Fine.  I'll do it.  Will that make you happy?  I'll do it do it DO IT!!!"

            I had jumped off of the bench at this last statement and was facing Angelina and Katie with my hands on my hips.  They were keeping suspiciously silent, and I heard a cough behind me.  I slowly turned around to find the boys standing in the doorway, arms full of sweets and quizzical expressions on their faces.  

            Lee shook his head.  "Alicia, if you insist on having Snape's love child, could you at least keep it to yourself?"  Everyone laughed as the boys settled back down and dumped their purchases on the table.  

            "Just for that comment, there better be at least four chocolate frogs in there," I said, leaning forward to sort through the loot.

            "Of course," said Lee, tossing a frog my way.  I caught it, opened it, and bit off the head.  I sighed and leaned back, relishing the familiar taste.  Chocolate Frogs are the absolute best candies in the world.  Hands down.

            "Hey George.  You want to try a really great Bertie Bott's bean?" asked Fred, offering out his hand.

            "I know it's a vomit flavored one.  Why do you even try?"  George shook his head and bit into a Cauldron Cake.

            Fred considered this for a moment.

            "Hey Angelina.  You want to try a really great Bertie Bott's bean?"

            On that note, the train continued towards Hogwarts.  

************************************************************

Alright, I'll try to get the next chapter up soon.  Please R&R!!!


	3. Back at School

A/N:  Sorry it's been a while… but now finals are over!  Yay!  Back to the kind of writing that I actually enjoy… Wow!  More reviewers!  Thanks to Katrina, Cecilia Orechio, dreamcoat, Ashleigh, Jagged Epiphany, and Lady Mione.  You guys were very kind.  Thank you also to everyone who put me on their favorites list – I never expected that!  I was wondering if anyone would want me to do an email update list.  If people would like me to, I wouldn't mind sending an email when the next chapter is up.  If you would want that, you could leave a note in your review. Ok… Happy reading!

Disclaimer:  All of the recognizable characters and situations belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.  The not so good stuff is mine.

That night, I was sitting on my bed, changed into my pajamas, trying to sort through all of the text books that I would be needing for my classes.  Angelina had gone off to take a shower, and Katie was setting up picture frames on her nightstand.  I looked over at the one that she had just propped up.  

            "Aw.  What a cute picture of you guys."  

            Katie grinned.  "I know."

            The picture in question had been taken after we had won the quidditch cup our fifth year.  In the background, you could see almost the entire school crowded onto the pitch.  Wood was visible, sobbing onto Harry's shoulder.  I couldn't see either Fred or George, but Angelina and I were jumping up and down and screaming our heads off.  Katie and Lee were in the foreground.  Katie was covered in dirt and sweat, and Lee had the biggest smile on his face that I had ever seen.  They were hugging happily, smiling and waving at the camera.  I shook my head.  

            "Wow.  So you guys have been dating now for… a year and a half?"

            Katie flopped backwards onto her bed.  "A year and eight months.  We started dating on Christmas Eve of our fifth year.  You should know, you convinced Lee to tell me how he felt."

            I smiled.  "Just doing my duty.  I like seeing my friends happy and in love."

            Katie sat back up.  "Really.  So that explains why you just love seeing Fred and Angelina together."

            I sighed.  "I don't know, I mean, I'm happy that they're happy.  But I really wish that they weren't always all over each other all the time.  It gets really irritating."

            Katie nodded.  "I know what you mean."

            I looked at her in surprise.  "Really?"

            She just smiled at me and then returned to setting up her photos.  I sat back, slightly puzzled.  I had always been under the impression that Katie's loyalties lay fiercely with Angelina.  But then again, maybe being with Lee had made her see all sides of every situation – after all, that's what he always did.

            "Hey," said Katie.  "Did you bring those pictures you took at Lee's birthday party?"

            "Oh, yeah.  Hold on, they're in my trunk."  I retrieved the pictures from my trunk, and then launched myself onto Katie's bed.  I managed to land partially on top of her.

            "Ow!  Get your bony arse off of me!"  Katie shoved me aside and I laughed as I rolled over.  

            "Just for that, maybe I shouldn't show you these pictures."  At the look Katie gave me, though, I quickly relented.  "Here."

            Katie began to flip through the pictures, pausing to study each one.  I curled my legs up under me and smiled as I remembered how much fun we had all had at Lee's party.  He had just invited us three girls and the Weasleys, and we had opened presents, eaten cake, and, best of all, gone in Lee's humungous swimming pool.  I had originally stayed out of the water and taken photos.  Until George had told me to put the camera down (I, like an idiot, obliged) and then picked me up and tossed me into the pool.  That's when the real war broke out.  I think we stayed in the water for an hour and a half, splashing and dunking each other, before we got out, put out our towels on the deck, and just sat and talked.  It was by far the best day of my summer.

            "Can I have this one?"  Katie was holding up what was, in my opinion, one of the best photos I'd taken that day.  Lee had picked Katie up and was about to dunk her under the water, when, seemingly out of nowhere, Katie had pulled out this tiny little squirt gun and nailed Lee in the face.  The photo was hysterical.  Both Lee and Katie were in the pool, dripping wet, and then there's Katie just aiming and firing, and this tiny little jet of water hits Lee in the face.  The expression on Lee's face was priceless.

            "Yeah, it's all yours."

            "Good.  I want to give it to Lee."  Katie rummaged around on the bed for a moment and picked up a quill.  "Now give me something poetic to write on the back."  She looked at me and waited expectantly.

            I stared at her incredulously.  "You want me to compose a poem about you and Lee?"

            Katie rolled her eyes.  "No, I'm not that much of a dolt.  I just want some little poetic phrase.  Like, 'You're the only flower in the field that I would want to pick.  Love, Katie.'  Only better than that.  And without the double entendre.  C'mon Alicia, you're great at this stuff."

            I picked up the photo and stared at it for a few moments.  "And even though the moment passed me by, I still can't turn away.  You're the piece of gold that flashes on my soul."

            Katie's eyes widened.  "That's brilliant!  You should do that crap for a living."

            "What, write greeting cards?  Yeah, I can just picture telling that to my Mum.  'Look, I know you just shelled out thousands for seven years of education at the top wizarding school in the nation, but gosh, I think my true calling in life is catch phrases for holiday cards.'  Yeah, she'd love that alright."  I climbed off Katie's bed to go finish unpacking.

"What class is that for?"  Katie was watching me attempt to heave a large black book across the room from my trunk to my bed.  It felt like it weighed about a hundred pounds.  She walked over after I had finally dragged it onto the edge of the bed, and brushed the dust off of the cover.

            "Magic: Beginnings, Progressions, and Evolvement," Katie read.  "Wow.  That's sure gonna be a fun class."

            I sighed.  "I know.  I'm starting to regret signing up for it.  I mean, I like history and all, but this looks like it's gonna be nearly impossible.  This will take up so much of my time.  Not to mention all of my other subjects, plus NEWTS, plus quidditch."  I shook my head and walked back over to my trunk to pull out a roll of parchment.

            "What's that?" asked Katie, returning to her bed.  

            "Summer homework," I replied, packing it in my bag for the next day.  "For Professor Binns, we had to write a three foot essay on how the study of the history of magic has influenced the development of Hogwarts.  I suppose that's what the boys are doing right now.  They always leave everything until the last – what?"  Katie was sitting on her bed, trying to contain her laughter.  And not succeeding.

            "I was just thinking of what Angelina and I had to do for summer homework for advanced care of magical creatures."

            "Well?" I said, knowing that I wouldn't like the answer.

            "Pick out a name for the Niffler that we're going to raise."

            I groaned and lay back on my bed, which only made her laugh harder.  

            "Shut up!" I yelled, tossing a pillow at Katie's head.  

            She sat up.  "You are so dead, Spinnet."

            When Angelina came in three minutes later, my and Katie's pillows were duking it out in the space between our beds.  Did I mention that I love school?

*************************

"Potions," said Lee grumpily, sitting down at the table the next morning.  Fred and George sat on opposite sides of him, looking as if they'd had less than an hour of sleep between them.  'There's a way to start the first day of school."

"Look on the bright side," said Angelina, spearing a stack of waffles.  "After that, we have Divination!"

Lee groaned and poured himself some orange juice.

"Fred, move your elbow," I commented, pouring syrup on my waffles.

"Alicia, why must you have a problem with the placement of my elbow?  I'm on the opposite side of the table from you.  You can't even see my elbow.  It's just resting causally here by Lee's glass of – whoops."

Lee, who was now covered in orange juice, glared at Fred before leaving the dining hall, presumably to go change his pants.

"Right then," muttered Fred, mopping up the rest of the juice.  "Sorry Alicia.  I forgot that you could see the future and such.  I thought you were just being your usual pleasant self."

"That's fine Fred," I said, dotting at my mouth with my napkin.  "No apology necessary.  It's reward enough being right when you're wrong."

Fred was apparently too tired to make a comeback, because he just began to eat his sausages in silence.  

"Do you guys have History of Magic at the same time Angelina and I have Care of Magical Creatures?" Katie asked.

George leaned over to look at Angelina's timetable.  "Yeah.  Right after lunch."

"Good.  Right after lunch, good time for a nap," said Fred, punctuating his remark with a loud yawn.

"Fred, don't you ever worry about your subjects?  Your grades?  How they'll affect the rest of your life?"

"Alicia, don't you ever worry that one day you'll realize that you should never look away from your food when either George or I are around?" Fred smiled calmly at me.

I glanced down and realized that my skin had turned purple.  The rest of the table burst out laughing.  After a moment of deliberating, I joined in.

"Don't worry," said George, smiling at me.  "It'll fade by our first class."

"It better, Weasley, or you won't ever be having children," I said, shoving down the butterflies in my stomach with a large gulp of milk.  Why must George have that effect on me?  Why must I be cursed with being a girl?  Why must George do that adorable half smile thing that makes me want to throw him down on top of the table and – 

"Alicia, did you do that whole essay for Binns?"  George was staring directly at me.  I tried to act as if I hadn't just been thinking extremely unclean thoughts about him.'

"Yeah.  Took me three bloody weeks.  I can already tell that this class is gonna be a pain."

"We saw Wood over the summer," said Fred, "And he told us that he took that class his seventh year, and that it was absolute hell.  He said that it was so intense that he couldn't focus on anything else all year."

"Well, it's just a wonder he found any time for quidditch it all then," muttered Angelina, obviously remembering our training schedule that year.

"On that cheering note, I'm going to head to potions."  I stood up and slung my bag over my shoulder.  "Anybody coming with me?"  

"Yeah, let's go," said Katie, also standing up.  The others got up too, and we slowly walked out of the dining hall and towards the dungeons.  "The last thing we need is to be late on the first day.  Snape could probably put us in the negative points-wise."

"Oh don't worry Katie.  Fred and George will lose quite enough points for all of us," I said, shooting a smile at the two of them.  Angelina suppressed a giggle while Fred just glared.

"What a shame, Alicia.  The purple barely disappears from your skin and you're already setting yourself up for another prank."  Fred shot me an ominous look.

"Oh, honestly you two," said George, placing a hand on both of our shoulders.  "Fred, relax.  She's just kidding.  And Alicia.  We know that you must fulfill your roll as the sarcastic, witty member of the group.  However, first thing in the morning is a little rough.  Now you two shake hands and make up."   George waited while Fred and I hesitated.  "I mean now!"

"Oh fine.  But just for you, George."  Fred stuck out his hand.  Seeing the smile on George's face, I immediately knew that the only way I would have any chance with George was to start getting along with Fred.  Even if I had to bite my tongue sometimes, it would be worth it.  Just to see that smile on George's face.  Snapping out of my sappy (and extremely pathetic) moment, I grabbed Fred's hand and shook.  Then a flash of inspiration hit me.

"Come on Fred.  Don't act like you haven't known me for seven years," I said, throwing my arms around him in what I hoped was a convincing manner.

"Oh fine," muttered Fred.  "If you want to be like that, then let's do this all out."  He picked me up off of the ground and squeezed me so hard that I thought that my internal organs were going to explode.

"Really Fred.  I'm sorry," I whispered in his ear.  He set me down.  "Oh fine.  Me too."  He grinned, and the five of us continued to walk.

"You too what?" asked Angelina, slipping her hand into Fred's.

"Fred was just saying that he enjoyed the sex that we had last night as much as I did," I said, as nonchalantly as possible.

"Oh yeah.  Alicia's a real killer in the sack," said Fred.

"Really Alicia.  You should have just asked.  He's all yours if you want him that badly."  Angelina smiled at a shocked Fred.  "He's not that hard to replace."

Fred sighed.  "Girls.  I just don't get it."

George patted him on the shoulder.  "You never will, Fred.  You never will."

By this point we had reached the entrance to Snape's classroom.  Lee was standing outside, a slightly nervous expression on his face.  "Good!  I thought you lot would never get here.  I was dreading sitting alone.  You guys ready?"

Angelina took a deep breath.  "Let's go.  No sense in postponing it any longer.  Same partners as last year then?"

We all looked at each other and nodded.  "Well, ladies first," said Lee, motioning with his hand.  I took a deep breath, glanced nervously at Lee, and then walked through the door.

A/N: Ok, I do not own the phase that Alicia wrote on the back of the photograph.  The first part is from "Name" by the Goo Goo Dolls, and the second part is from "Playground Love" by Air.  Sorry that this chapter was a little slow moving, I needed to get some stuff established.  The action should start to pick up in about two chapters.  In the next chapter:  potions class, divination class, history of magic class………. And (drum roll please) SNAPE'S FLASK OF OVERCOMPENSATION!!!  If you want to know what that is, you'll just have to stay tuned… please r&r!  

Love, Betsy


	4. Classes, Snape, and the Missing Inkbottl...

A/N:  First of all…. I am so so sorry!!!  Funny how a few days can turn into two months… I really have no excuse except for a little bit of laziness and some persistent writers block.  Then, lo and behold, I write a little ER fic (go check it out! Shameless self promotion, I know…) and suddenly the creative juices are flowing again!  So here is my long awaited chapter four.  I hope you guys will still read and review!  Oh, and finally, HUGE thanks to my reviewers who nagged me to write more.  Individual thanks at the end!  Ok, you can read now…..

Disclaimer:  Well, even though I seem to have adapted her rate of writing, I guarantee you I am not J.K.

Walking in, I surveyed the dungeon that had been a regular feature in my nightmares for the past six years.  I headed towards the back of the room to find a table.  I dumped my bag on a table and watched as Lee sat down next to me.  Angelina and Katie took the table to the right of us, and Fred and George sat at the table directly behind Lee and me.  Lee began to flip through the seventh year potions book as I unloaded our ingredients onto the table.

            "Huh," muttered Lee, scanning over a page detailing the procedure for something called the Polyjuice Potion, complete with several graphic pictures.  I continued to set up our work station, watching out of the corner of my eye as Lee glanced at most of the pages in the book before finally beginning to pour over the index.  Finally, apparently giving up, he shut the book, frustrated.

            "Penny for your thoughts, Jordan," I said, setting down the last bag of Bollyswag root.

            Lee frowned, looking thoughtful.  "Well, every year, Snape has been giving his same speech about this whole 'putting a stopper in death' business.  And every year, I get let down.  Now, do you actually think we'll be let in on his secret this year?  Or do you think he's been leading us on all these years?  There's nothing in this book about anti-death potions!  Nothing!  I think we've been gypped!"

            I glanced at him, bemused.  "I think that you should make sure you have another quill, because that one's going to break in about half an hour."

            Lee muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "stupid psychic" as he rummaged around in his bag for another quill.  Before I could lean over and smack him, however, Snape billowed with his usual flourish into the room.

            "Quiet down.  Pay attention.  This year will be your most challenging of all of your years at Hogwarts.  This course will be no exception.  You've all had a fairly easy ride prior to this year.  You will now have to put in some hard work if you expect to pass."  Snape glared at all of us, hoping to stare away the laziness, I suppose.  I heard several groans coming from around the room.  Hurriedly, I grabbed my quill and began to take notes.

            After ten minutes of lecturing, consisting of roughly half information and half threats, Snape began to demonstrate how to make our first potion of the year.  Figuring we would have to make it for a grade during the next class, I turned to a fresh page in my notebook and tried to pay extra close attention.

            Immediately, Lee grabbed my arm.  I turned to see him practically bouncing out of his seat.  "He's gonna use the flask!  Oh, this is rich!"

            I sighed, sneaking a glance behind me to see the twins.  Sure enough, they both bore huge grins on their faces to match Lee's.  "Snape's Flask of Overcompensation strikes again," I muttered, sending Lee into a fit of gleeful giggles.

            The joke about Snape's flask had started in our third year, when the flask Snape used for measuring liquid while demonstrating potions shattered due to an unfortunate incident involving a misfired curse and an overly enlarged toad.  When Snape began class the next day using a brand new flask, Katie observed that it was at least three times as long as the previous flask.  This led to Lee promptly dubbing it "Snape's Flask of Overcompensation."  Katie, Angelina, and I, after initially being confused as to what the flask could be overcompensating for, then found it funny for a few days.  However, four years after it's inception, the joke had worn thin.  The boys, however, still found new humorous angles every time it was brought out.  As I heard them tittering around me, I realized that today was no exception.

            Snape was demonstrating the proper way to make the potion at the front of the room.  "Now, after you pour the Sicotore juice into the flask, it will still be separated from the Danslag powder you put in previously.  Therefore, you must mix them properly for the potion to work correctly."  Snape picked up his wand as I furiously scribbled notes on my paper.

            "Watch me carefully.  Jenkins, pay attention!  Ten points from Hufflepuff.  Now, grasp your flask firmly near the top."  Lee snickered, and I heard George choke down a laugh.

            Snape stopped momentarily to stare suspiciously at our side of the room before continuing.  "Now, tap your wand on the dip of the flask.  Be sure to use a slow, downward motion."  Lee was turning purple with the effort of not laughing.  I turned my head over my shoulder.  Fred was holding his had over his mouth and was shaking with silent laughter.  George had buried his face in his robes.  I turned back to Snape.

            "Now, watch as I perform this final step.  Note that after the liquids have been properly mixed within the flask, you will release them into the cauldron, resulting in a loud explosion."

**********************************

"Good thing that Snape finishing off the potion caused that deafening explosion, because otherwise Lee and the twins would have lost the first points of the year for Gryffindor, due to their hysterical laughter at the uh, climax of the experiment."  I was recounting what had happened with the boys to Angelina and Katie as we walked from Potions to Charms.  

"Ugh," grimaced Katie.  "I never want to hear the words 'Snape' and 'climax' in the same sentence ever again."

"Agreed," said Angelina.  "Although….  I wonder, do you think when he hits his peak, he yells out 'Gillyweed!' right at the moment?"

"GAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"  Katie and I began to shriek as we ran up the hall.  The boys, who were walking ahead of us, turned around to see us covering our ears, expressions of great pain on our faces, and Angelina trailing behind us, laughing.

"I don't think I really want to know," said George, shaking his head as we entered Flitwick's classroom.

************************************

            By the time lunch was over, we had discussed Snape's sex life to a greater extent than I had ever wanted or needed to hear.  We had also enthusiastically congratulated Angelina on her appointment as Quidditch captain.  She then told us that there would be try outs for the keeper on Saturday, but until then we would begin practicing every evening for a few hours to "get back in shape."  And then, right before we left, Professor McGonogall had passed out sheets to all the seventh years informing us of the deadlines for N.E.W.T. registration.  In the Main Hall, the six of us split, with Angelina and Katie heading off to Hagrid's for Care of Magical Creatures, and the boys and I walking up the stairs to Advanced History of Magic.

            As we wandered towards the classroom, I reflected upon how much I liked to spend time with just the boys.  I mean, I love Angelina and Katie.  But I kind of like having the guys all to myself, too.  It sounds stupid, but it kind of makes me feel special, like I'm the favorite or something.  Hey, I already said it sounds stupid.  

            When we sat down, I ended up in between George and Lee, much to my delight.  I pulled out my essay and smoothed it on the surface of the table.  I peered over at George's essay.

            "George.  You only have three feet because you wrote large enough for me to see it from across the room.  Binns probably won't even accept this."

            George shook his head.  "I really don't care too much.  I was never actually expecting to do that well in the class."

            I turned back to Lee to ask how he thought he was going to do when I noticed that my inkbottle was missing.  I groaned.  "Lee.  This is pathetic.  It's only the first day.  Give me back my ink."

            Lee gave me his best innocent face.  "Alicia, what are you talking about?"

            I gave him the bitchiest glare I could muster.  "Lee.  Reginald.  Jordan.  Give me my ink now!"

            Lee put a comforting arm around my shoulders.  "Sometimes losing an inkbottle can be hard, Alicia, but you have to –" Too late, I realized what he had done.  I whirled around so that I was facing George.

            "Nuh uh.  I know this trick.  Lee put his arm around me to pass the bottle to you.  Now give it."

            George just grinned.  "Alicia, so accusatory!  I do not have your ink."  I groaned and buried my head into my arms.  I hate being alone with the boys!  Well, sometimes.  

            "Did someone misplace an inkbottle?" I heard a dry voice reverberating from the front of the room.  Sure enough, Professor Binns was glancing pointedly at my inkbottle, which was now resting on his desk.  Muttering curses under my breath, I retrieved the said inkbottle from him and returned to my seat.  Flustered, I pulled my book and some parchment out of my bag.

            "Hand in your essays, please," croaked Professor Binns.  As I passed my essay towards the front of the classroom, I felt George lean over and squeeze my arm.  "Sorry for that Alicia," he whispered.  "It's just that you're so irresistible." 

            I blinked.  "What?"

            George gave me a strange look.  "I said, 'Playing tricks on you is too easy, it's so irresistible.'  Did you get enough sleep last night?"

            Before I could choke out a reply, Professor Binns began to lecture.  I began to write.  And write.  And write.  And write.  And write.  By the time an hour had passed, I thought my hand was going to fall off.

            "That concludes today's lecture.  A large part of this class will be reading comprehension.  You will be reading approximately forty pages for each session of this class.  At the beginning of every class there will be a quiz on the previous nights assignment.  Therefore, I suggest you keep up with the reading.  So for the remaining twenty minutes, you may start on the reading assignment for our next class."  

            I opened the massive textbook in front of me and stared at the tiny words filling the page.  I flipped through the pages, curious to see if there would be any pictures.  Huh.  Apparently not.  For the second time that afternoon, I buried my head into my hands.  Quidditch, classes, N.E.W.T.s, inappropriate fantasies about George, mental images of Snape's sex life… I decided it was official.  I would be dead before the end of the year.

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dreamcoat:  Sorry for not following the soon part, lol!  Thanks for adding me to your faves.  That means a lot!

Ashliegh:  Thanks!  Took me awhile to figure out how to describe wizard pictures… how does J.K. do it so well?

Jagged Epiphany:  I agree that there aren't enough G/A shippers out there!  By the way, your stories about them are awesome, you're a real inspiration to the rest of us!

Lady Mione:  You are so sweet!  I'm glad I could make you laugh.  Please update your story soon, I absolutely love it!

Cinnamon:  Glad you thought it was funny!  Sorry I made you wait so long…

Legano-san:  Your review put a smile on my face… short and simple huh? J

Philyra:  Watch out for those premonitions… I'm trying to hint at something for future chapters.  I'm glad you like those, they're going to be a BIG part of the story later on!

Heck E. Nah:  I'm so glad you love it!  I did write more, although it took me a little while, huh?

Lil' Fairy:  Ah, you caught me!  I didn't update!  I'm sorry!  That's great that you love the quidditch girls and the Weasley twins just as much as I do!

DaiZe:  I hope you didn't die while waiting for me to get my act together!  I hope this chapter satisfies you!

Alright, again, thank you to everyone for having patience with me.  Coming up in Chapter 5: Quidditch tryouts, a mysterious letter for Alicia, more of those pesky visions and perhaps even some progress with George?  Stay tuned!  And I promise it won't take me another two months!


	5. Quidditch, Quidditch, Quidditch

A/N:  Ok, I know I promised that in this chapter Alicia would receive a mysterious letter.  However, I realized I had typed eight single spaced pages and still hadn't gotten the characters out of quidditch practice.  So you'll have to wait until the next chapter for the letter.  I did foreshadow a little bit though, maybe you can guess what happens…  Anyways, thanks for being patient, and PLEASE read and review!!!!  I didn't get many reviews last time.  But thank you so much to the people who did review!  As always, you guys made my day.  Happy reading!

Disclaimer:  On June 21st, I will NOT be selling millions of copies of my next book.  Hence, the characters do not belong to me.

By Saturday morning, I was feeling a lot better about the year ahead.  Classes were tough (especially Advanced History of Magic), quidditch practices bordered on insane, and I was still a big fat zero when it came to making romantic advances on George.  But I was remembering why I chose to come back every year: I loved Hogwarts more than any other place I had ever been.  Hogwarts was really and truly my home.  A place where I could feel loved.  A place where I could feel comfortable.  A place where I could be relaxed, rested, and –

            "Alicia!"  Angelina stood over me, repeatedly poking me with a broomstick and breaking my sweet, semi-slumbering reverie.  "Alicia.  Get your arse out of bed.  I told you last night that we have to be on the field by 9:30.  And by the end of the day, we'll have a new keeper!"

            I groaned and rolled over.  "Angelina.  Tryouts don't start until noon."

            Angelina poked me again.  "Well, I figure we need time to arrange a system for tryouts."

            At this, I sat bolt upright.  "Two and a half hours?  How complex do you plan on making these tryouts?"

            Angelina rolled her eyes.  "No, silly.  Only half an hour to set up tryouts.  The other two hours are for practice!  KATIE!  UP!"  As Angelina bounded over to Katie's bed, I lay back down.  Maybe while Angelina bugged Katie I could get a few more minutes of sleep.

****************************************

            At 9:30 on the dot, myself and the five other players that made up the current Gryffindor quidditch team had assembled on the pitch.  We sat down as our fearless leader began to wax poetic about how we needed a goalkeeper, and how the filling of this position would truly "complete our team and unify us so that we become – well, unified."  As usual, we only began to pay attention when she began dealing out instructions.

            "Alright guys.  Since we are still short a player, we'll stick to more individual drills like we've been doing this whole week.  Fred, George, I got you guys some special bludgers.  They're about twice as heavy as the normal ones.  Don't even think about looking at me like that, this is great for conditioning!  Go hit them around over on that end of the pitch.  Once you see that we're done warming up, fly down to where we are and start directing the bludgers away from us.  No target practice!  And make sure you're taking full swings; really try to use all of your muscles.  Oh, and don't forget to alternate strong and weak sides."  Angelina stopped, appearing slightly out of breath.

            "Of course dear!" said Fred, smiling the smile of a man who knew how to make a woman happy.

            George rolled his eyes and made a gagging noise.  I giggled as I watched him grab the bludger case and fly off after Fred.

            Angelina turned her attention towards the youngest member of our team.  "Now, Harry, I want you to –"

            "Let me guess."  Harry cut her off abruptly.  "Catch the snitch?"  He was grinning devilishly.  I couldn't help smiling.  You couldn't stay pissed at Harry.  He's just too darn adorable.

            Luckily for all of us, Angelina was smiling too.  "Yes, catch the snitch, smartass.  But make sure you work the whole field.  Get in our way.  We'll try to simulate game conditions as much as we can."  Harry nodded and launched into the air.  I watched him go, slightly envious.  What I wouldn't do for a Firebolt…

            "Alright, ladies.  Let's warm up our arms a little, and then let's do that drill we learned yesterday."  Katie and I nodded our agreement, and the three of us took off.  Each of us was holding a quaffle so we could all shoot simultaneously as we warmed up.

            The ground began to vanish below me as I headed up, up, up.  As I zoomed towards the goal, I rolled my head back and forth, trying to eliminate the cricks in my neck.  Nearing the hoops, I focused on the one on the right.  I pulled my arm back, put on a final burst of speed, and fired.  The quaffle soared straight through the ring.  Grinning, I turned around and doubled back to catch it as it automatically swung around to the front of the goal.  

            "Nice arm, Alicia!"  Angelina zipped past me, giving me a thumbs up as she dove towards the middle hoop.  

            The three of us continued to warm up, circling the hoops and shooting from various positions.  After about half an hour, Angelina waved us over.  I glided to a halt where she and Katie were floating in mid air.

            "Everyone feeling good out there?"  She looked to Katie and I for confirmation.  After we nodded, she continued.  "Good.  We practiced rapid cutting yesterday, now let's try doing it and shooting.  Katie, you and I will pass and weave as we come up the field.  Alicia, I want you to circle the goalpost as if you were a third man option.  As we approach, drop back.  Hopefully, this will pull back whoever's guarding you.  Katie, I'll pass to you and then head behind the goal.  This should pull my guard out of the way too.  Then, instead of shooting, I want you to drop the quaffle.  Don't even look, just do it.  Alicia, right as she does that, you need to sprint like hell and be underneath to grab it and shoot from below.  This move is tricky, ok?  It's all about timing and trust.  So let's do it.  We'll run it in these positions for a while and then we'll rotate.  Any questions?"

            I shook my head, as did Katie.  

            "Alright then.  Let me have your quaffles."  We handed them to her.  Angelina reached into her robes and pulled out her wand.  She tapped two of the quaffles, muttering something under her breath.  She then put her wand away and let go of the quaffles.  Katie and I watched as they fell to the ground.  Angelina tossed the remaining quaffle to Katie.

            "Let's do this."  With that, she and Katie took off down the field.  I flew over to the goal and began to move around a little, trying to get myself in focus.  Down the field, I could see Angelina gesturing to Fred and George.  I continued to watch as they flew down the field, heading towards me.  They were taking humungous swings at the bludgers, essentially passing them to each other as they continued to get closer to me.  Neither of them ever practiced in their robes, choosing instead to wear t-shirts and athletic pants, and as George swung his club back to whack a bludger, I could see his muscles rippling.  Suddenly aware that I was about to start drooling, I forced myself to focus on Katie and Angelina, who had begun to move down the field toward my end.  I continued to concentrate on them exclusively, and as a result, didn't see a bludger heading for my head until a beater's club suddenly appeared, knocking it out of the way.  I jerked backwards, suddenly aware.

            George hovered a few inches away from me, grinning.  "Glad to see you truly focused on the game, tiger."  I rolled my eyes and shoved him a little.

            "Hey, I was just helping you do your job.  I could've moved if I wanted to.  I just wanted to test your reflexes."  I gave him what I hoped was an enticing look.

            George raised his eyebrows.  "That's just like you, Alicia.  Always watching my back."  He raised his club and took off again, but not before reaching over and yanking my ponytail.  I reached for him but it was already too late.  I began to watch Katie and Angelina again, trying very hard not to blush.

            Angelina passed the quaffle to Katie, and then began to head straight behind the goalposts.  I leaned forward and sprinted out in the opposite direction.  I began to circle in a wide arc so that I was facing the goalposts again.  I watched Katie.  She was darting back and forth, looking for all intents and purposes like she was choosing whether or not to shoot or pass it off to Angelina.  Then I saw her suddenly head up.

            "Now," I muttered, and with that, I shot off as fast as I could make my broom go.  Sure enough, Katie dropped the quaffle.  I snatched the quaffle at full speed and without hesitating; I shot as hard as I could at the nearest hoop.  I immediately spun around 180 degrees and shot back towards the middle of the pitch, figuring that the imaginary person guarding me would certainly have caught up by now.  I heard Angelina yelling behind me.

            "Alicia!"  I turned to see her gesturing to come back.  I flew back yet again, stopping by her and Katie.  Angelina was smiling enthusiastically.  "That was awesome, girls.  Truly awesome.  Katie, your timing was perfect.  And Alicia, I think any keeper stupid enough to get in the way of that shot would have been knocked unconscious."

            "Alicia, I think with that kind of arm, you could easily replace Fred or George," said Katie, shaking her head in disbelief.  "That was one amazing shot."

            "Well, let's see if you can pull it off again," said Angelina.  "Reposition!"  

            "Sir, yes sir!"  Katie gave a mock salute.

            "Funny, Bell," said Angelina, glaring daggers.  Rolling my eyes, I resumed my position, hoping that the rest of practice would go this well.

******************************************

            At 11:30, Angelina had us all come down to the ground.  As I landed, I dismounted my broom, sore all over, sweating like a horse, and grinning from ear to ear.  I had been "on" today; I knew it.  No matter what position I had taken in the drill, everything had been going well.  I sat down on the grass next to George, figuring that if I could do this well in every practice, this was going to be my best season ever.

            Suddenly, I felt a handful of grass being stuffed down my t-shirt.  I sat still for a moment, in utter and total disbelief.  Slowly, I turned so that I was facing George.

            "You did not just do what I think you just did."

            "And what if I did?"  George was smiling.

            "Then prepare to die."  I grabbed a handful of grass and attempted to rub it in his face, but he fended me off pretty easily.  I swung my other arm around in an attempt to hold him down, but he just grabbed the other hand.  I shoved all my weight against my arms in an attempt to push him over, but somehow, he wasn't moving anywhere.

            "It's helpless, Alicia.  Give up.  Don't make me tickle you."

            Faced with the prospect of being tickled extensively (which I knew would lead to a very pissed off Angelina), I elected to surrender.  George was still smiling as I settled myself back down next to him.  He sighed happily, and swung an arm around my shoulders.  I bit my lip, trying in vain to control the tingly feeling that was quickly overtaking my body.

            "Take a deep breath and inhale, Alicia.  Do you know what that smell is?"

            "Your disgusting sweat?"

            "No.  That, my dear Alicia, is the sweet smell of victory.  I think I'll choose to savor it."

            I took advantage of his momentary relaxation to elbow him in the side.  He made a grand gesture of falling to the ground in pain.  I nudged him with my foot.

            "Don't get too comfortable in your temporary achievement.  I know where you sleep."

            "George!  Sit up, pay attention, and if you harm one of my chasers you will find yourself wishing that you had never been born."  Angelina was standing over George with her hands on her hips.  George, not being stupid, quickly sat up.

            Angelina cleared her throat and began to speak.  "We ran over a little bit.  We only have about fifteen minutes before everyone arrives, so pay attention.  I'm going to start off by having them pair off and toss the quaffle back and forth.  I want you guys to just fly around and observe.  You all know enough about quidditch to know what makes a good keeper.  Keep in mind, though, that next year Harry will be building an almost entirely new team, so if you spot anyone who you think isn't cut out for keeper but might do well as a chaser or a beater, make a mental note.  Actually, even better, make a written note.  Over on the bleachers I brought out some notebooks and quills for all of us.  I'm going to enchant numbers to fly over the heads of the people trying out.  So if number six can't catch with his left hand, write that down.  Moving on.  So after they warm up, I'm going to send them all to one end of the pitch with Alicia.  She'll be equipped with a quaffle.  They'll rotate into the goal.  She'll shoot once, and they'll either save or miss, and then the next player will rotate in.  Alicia, you'll just keep doing this one at a time.  One by one, I'll call them down to the other end of the pitch.  There, they'll be playing goalie for five straight minutes.  Katie and I will be passing back and forth and shooting at them for the whole time.  Fred, you'll just chase around one of the bludgers on our end for the whole time each one is in goal.  Aim it at them every so often, just to make sure they're keeping alert.  Harry, you'll stay on my end, taking notes.  George, you go with Alicia and take notes.  Questions?"

            I raised my hand.  "How hard should I shoot?"

            Angelina bit her lip for a moment, a sign that she was thinking.  "More than a pass, less than a full out shot.  Prepare them for their alone time with me, but I also want them to be surprised… You know what I mean?"

            I nodded.  "I think so."

            "Good, because they're coming out here."  Harry was pointing to a group of people walking onto the pitch, holding broomsticks and wearing identical expressions of fear.

            "Over here!" Angelina yelled as we all stood up.  I squirmed a little, trying to shake the remaining grass off of my back.  George reached over and brushed a clump of grass out of my hair.  I caught his eye for a moment but couldn't think of anything to say.

            The candidates had all lined up in front of us.  Angelina took a deep breath, a sure sign that she was about to do her favorite thing in the whole world: talk.

            "Welcome to the tryouts for keeper of the Gryffindor quidditch team.  I'm Angelina Johnson, captain.  I play chaser on the team.  Over here are the other players on the team who will be evaluating you today during tryouts.  Before we begin, I have a few words."

            "Why don't I believe that," whispered George.  I put my hand over my mouth so I wouldn't laugh.

            "I'm sure all of you have heard of Oliver Wood, our previous keeper.  Some of you may have seen him play.  I'm sure that you all think he was a great keeper.  Well, you're wrong.  He was a sensational keeper.  Right now, he's playing on the reserve team for Puddlemere United.  Suffice to say, replacing Oliver will not be an easy task.  We need a keeper who can fill some very big shoes.  So if any of you were just coming out here to fool around or to try being a keeper for the first time, this probably isn't the place.  Anyone want out?"  Angelina looked at the fifteen people standing in front of her.  They looked even more terrified than before, but none of them moved.  Angelina smiled.  "Good.  Prepare to work hard, then.  And if at the end of this tryout, you think that we worked you too hard, just come and tell me."

            Some of the candidates smiled in relief.

            "And I'll tell you that I won't consider you for the position.  What we do today will be ten times easier then any practice you'll ever have."

            Having thoroughly harassed the candidates, Angelina began to pair them off and explain the coming drills.

****************************************

            I stared at the hoop in front of me and blinked a few times, trying in vain to dig up enough energy to make a shot.

            "Uh Alicia?"  Ron Weasley was floating in front of the goal, staring at me.  "Um, are you going to shoot?  You've been staring at me for almost a minute."

            I sighed.  "Sorry Ron.  How about you guys take a few minutes and get some water.  Be back here in five and we'll start shooting again."  I watched the group of candidates that had been lined up next to the goal fly down and land on the ground.  I flew over to wear George was drifting.

            "I cannot do this anymore.  This is insane.  The six of us have been on the field for nearly six hours."

            George nodded.  "Looks like the others aren't feeling much better."  I turned and looked at the set of hoops on the other end.  Angelina, the only one who looked alive, was gesturing to whoever was playing in goal, swinging her arm back in preparation for a shot.  Katie was drinking from a large bottle of water, looking as if she was on her last legs.  Fred had actually dozed off on his broom, having put a freezing charm on the bludger that was floating next to his head.  Harry was staring with a blank, vacant expression on his face as he flew in slow and deliberate figure eights around Fred.  I shook my head.

            "She's made each of the candidates go one on one with her four times.  And now she's started on cycle number five.  I think my arm is going to fall off if I have to throw the quaffle one more time."

            George frowned.  "Your shoulder hurt?"

            "Throbbing pain, check."

            George leaned over and grabbed the quaffle out of my hands.  "I'll shoot.  You just float around and give pointers."

            "George, you're a beater."

            He shrugged.  "What, you think I've never thrown a quaffle in my life?  Come on, I can do this.  You don't even have to take notes.  I think I have everything on these players except for their DNA."

            I sighed.  I hated admitting defeat, but I was honestly afraid that my shoulder might give out.  "I don't know.  If Angelina sees us –"

            "If Angelina sees us I'll tell her I was saving one of her best chasers from a season ending injury.  Here, head over there and make sure they line up correctly.  They're starting to come back up."

            I smiled as George flew off to reposition himself in front of the rings.  Hot and sensitive.  Damn, damn, damn.  

            "Jacobs, you're up!"  I yelled.  I watched as George shot the quaffle at the fourth year girl hovering in front of the rings.  Actually, he wouldn't be half bad as a chaser.  I then immediately silenced the voice in my head commenting that I would really love it if he would chase me.  Damn dirty voices.

            "Blakely!"  I watched as the next candidate flew to take his place.  Nearly three hours of watching this kid had led me to believe that he could only do anything with his right hand.  Sure enough, George sent a fairly easy shot towards the lower left, and Blakely just watched it go by.  I had a distinct feeling that Blakely was not going to be our next keeper.  In fact, he was actually – actually – 

            _I was sitting in a room staring, straight ahead.  There was a woman sitting across the table from me, who I had never seen in my life.  And I could feel fear boiling in my stomach so intensely that I threatened to explode._

            "Alicia?"  George suddenly appeared in front of me, and I was jerked back to the present to find myself inches away from him and surrounded by fourteen pairs of curious eyes.  "Did you pass out or something?  I think you should go land, get a drink or something…"

            "I'm fine," I smiled, hoping he would get the hint.  "I just was day dreaming for a minute there.  You know, one of those dreams I always have.  Dreams about the future?"

            Realization dawned on George's face.  "Oh, one of those dreams.  Right.  Ok, everyone, back in line!"

            Before anyone could get back in line, however, we heard Angelina yelling for us to come down.  Grateful for the distraction, I sped away from the others, trying to figure out what the hell my vision might mean.

            We landed next to Angelina as the candidates assembled in a line in front of us.

            "First of all, I would like to congratulate all of you on an excellent performance.  All of you far exceeded my expectations.  Unfortunately, we will only be selecting one keeper.  However, I hope that this does not discourage the rest of you.  There will be five of us graduating this year, which means there will be five empty spots on next year's team.  So please, keep practicing, and maybe next year you'll find yourself better suited to the spot of chaser or beater.  Anyone else have any comments?"  Angelina turned to look at us as she finished speaking.  Hesitantly, I stepped forward.

            "Um.  Well, first I'll repeat what Angelina said about all of you doing so well today.  It's going to be a tough decision.  I'm Alicia Spinnet, by the way, and I play chaser on the team.  I guess I – well, I just have a story I'm going to tell you.  I grew up loving quidditch my whole life.  When I was six, I got my first broom, and I began to play with other kids in my neighborhood.  Right from the start, I wanted to be a seeker.  I knew it would take lots of hard work, so I did it.  I worked and worked and worked.  And I came to Hogwarts my first year all excited, because I wanted to play seeker for my house team.  Well, I was immediately dealt two crushing blows.  As you all know, the house teams do not accept first year players.  Except in special occasions.  But that's not the point.  So I figured I would just try out for seeker my second year.  Well, my first flying lesson came and went, and I asked Madame Hooch if she thought I had any chance at making it as a seeker.  She flat out told me no way.  But she did give me some good news.  She told me that I had all the natural instincts of a chaser, and that I if I worked hard, I could probably make the team as a chaser my second year.  This thrilled me.  I practiced and practiced and practiced.  Second year rolled around.  I tried out, gave it my all, and – and I didn't make the team.  I was crushed.  But I'm too darn proud to ever admit to failure, so I just kept practicing.  And the next year, I made the team.  And well, here I am.  So I guess the whole point of that long winded speech was just to say two things: first of all, never give up on what you want.  And second of all, sometimes what feels like the worst thing in the world can turn into the best opportunity in the world.  So, yeah, I guess that's all."  Blushing slightly, I stepped back.  I couldn't remember the last time I'd talked for that long.

            Angelina was smiling, along with the rest of the team.  "Thanks, Alicia.  What Alicia said is all true, guys.  Take it to heart.  All right, you can all go.  I'll make an announcement tomorrow at breakfast.  First practice is tomorrow evening."

            As the candidates wandered back to school, laughing and talking, Angelina turned to face all of us.  "Ok, for once, I'm going to make this simple.  I ballots for all of you.  They have the number that I gave each player along with their last name.  Circle who you think is the best choice.  I'm thinking that we're all going to be in agreement, but if not, we'll talk.  Take a few minutes to think, and then give me your paper.  If we all agree, we'll be back in our rooms in ten minutes."

            I grabbed my ballot from Angelina and sat down on the grass next to George so we could look over our notes.  After skimming through them once, I realized that the notes confirmed the person that I had been thinking of all along.  Just to double check, though, I waked over to where the others were sitting and read Harry's notes.  They also backed up the person I thought would be best.  Walking back over to George, I circled a name on the ballot, folded the paper in half, and lay down on the grass to wait for the others to finish.  A moment later, I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye as George lay down next to me on the grass.  I shifted a little to the side to give him more room, secretly wishing I could pounce on him and snog him like no tomorrow.

            "I'm guessing you had a vision before?"  He had turned his head to speak to me, and because of the way my elbow was lightly touching his chest, his voice sent vibrations running through me.  Control.  It was all about the control.

            "Yeah.  I think I freaked out the candidates though."  George laughed, sending even more vibrations.  

            "What was it about?"

            I didn't say anything for a moment.  Normally, I told my friends about my visions without hesitation.  But somehow, I just couldn't.  Something about the nature of this one seemed to demand secrecy.  

            "Oh, you know, usual crap.  Snape is going to take points off a Gryffindor in class tomorrow."  Really, it didn't matter that I had lied.  I could always tell George the truth later if the vision panned out to be something significant.  Hey, I had misinterpreted visions before.  Once I thought that Angelina had died because I had a vision that Fred was giving her CPR, but, well, let's just say I was very wrong.  I looked at George, hoping he believed me.

            "Well in that case, I might as well pull a prank on him tomorrow."  George was smiling, but there was seriousness in his eyes that I couldn't really read.  Flustered, I sat up.

            "I'm going to go give my ballot to Angelina.  I would really like to take a shower; I really, really smell."

            George sat up next to me.  "Sounds good."  He jumped to his feet.  He turned around and offered me an arm, which I gratefully grabbed and let him pull me up.  We walked over to Angelina and handed her our ballots.  The five of us stood around and watched as she opened and read all six ballots.  Nodding, she crouched down and spread them on the ground.

            "A unanimous vote.  Look for yourselves."

            We all let out a sigh of relief.  The last thing anyone wanted was to sit around and argue for another hour.  Fred wrapped his arms around Angelina from behind and rested his head on her shoulder.  

            "Well, sweetie, you know what they say about great minds thinking alike."

            "Well then that obviously explains why you, Lee, and George find Snape's flask so amusing."  Katie smiled angelically as we all began to walk back to the castle.

            "Hardy har har," muttered Fred, but George was grinning.  

            "All I want to do is take a shower and crawl into bed," I yawned, swinging my broom over my shoulder.

            "So you'll just ignore all your homework then?" asked Harry, smiling.

            "Dammit," I muttered.  "We should get some kind of an excuse to not do our homework after practicing for five and a half hours."

            George shrugged.  "I don't have an excuse.  But if you give Fred and I about half an hour, we could come up with some chocolate frogs and butterbeer…" 

            Katie, Angelina, and I all stopped dead in our tracks and looked at each other for a moment before grabbing the boys and beginning to drag them at a run back to the castle.  Somehow sugar makes anything seem better…

***************************************

Hope everyone enjoyed that chapter!  Please tell me if I get too wordy and long-winded, I can't believe this chapter was so long!  And pretty pretty please read and review!  In the next chapter:  Angelina announces the new keeper, Alicia gets a mysterious letter (I promise) and it takes her somewhere outside of Hogwarts… What?  Is that plot progression?  Where did that come from?


	6. A Mysterious Letter

A/N:  Well, I told you it would arrive… and here it is!  Yes, the seven-month awaited chapter six.  I hope I still have some readers out there!  And if you do decide to forgive me and read this, please leave a review.  I cannot give enough thanks and praise to everyone who reviewed and encouraged me to update.  I put individual thanks at the end.  I'll let you read now, but if you want to know the update status on my fics, please click on my profile.  Ok!  Go forth and read!

At breakfast on Monday morning, I couldn't manage more than one piece of toast.  After consuming approximately twice my weight in chocolate frogs over the course of the weekend, I wasn't feeling that hungry.  If fact, I was thinking that fasting for the coming week would still leave me quite full.  I watched Lee stuff pancakes into his mouth.  Felling slightly nauseated, I pulled out my History of Magic reading as a distraction.  I knew that I hadn't prepared well enough for the quiz.  Maybe if I reviewed the stuff now, it would stick in my head.

            "Alicia, why are you studying that junk again?  You were studying for an hour last night.  The quiz is only worth a few points."  Fred punctuated his points by jabbing a sausage in my face.

            "I don't care.  After I finished studying last night, I did Charms, Transfiguration, and Potions homework.  So all the History of Magic stuff just slipped right out of my brain.  Besides, I have to do well on this quiz.  I missed three points on the last one."  I flicked Fred's sausage away from my book.

            Lee gave me a meaningful look.  "Well, you missed a terrific game of Exploding Snap last night.  That's all I'm saying."

            "Yeah, whatever, I'll wipe the floor with you next time," I muttered, trying to memorize a timeline.  I heard a noise across the table, which made me glance up.  Angelina was climbing on top of the table.

            "Attention Gryffindors!"  The Gryffindors, along with the rest of the dining hall, were all staring at Angelina, who was looking as dignified as possible considering she had one foot in a platter of eggs.

            "I am here to announce that the Gryffindor quidditch team has chosen a new keeper!  We were privileged over the weekend to have fifteen impressive candidates vie for the position.  The decision was a difficult one.  But one candidate reigned supreme above the rest.  So, without further ado – " Angelina paused, waiting for the snickers to stop.  "Let me introduce you to our new keeper, Ron Weasley!"  The entire Gryffindor table immediately burst into applause.  I glanced at Ron, who was blushing furiously while Harry, grinning from ear to ear, clapped him on the back.  Suddenly, Fred and George tackled Ron from either side.

            "Let's hear it for our widdle Ronnikins!" roared Fred, lifting Ron into the air with the assistance of George.

            George was yelling, too, starting a house wide chant of "Ronn-i-kins!  Ronn-i-kins!"  I was laughing so hard that I barely noticed the owls flying in for the morning mail.  My owl, Aphrodite, landed by my arm, nudging at me.  I took an envelope from her beak, and then replaced it with a piece of toast.  She nudged me again, in what I assumed was an affectionate manner before taking off again.

            I examined the cream colored envelope in front of me.  My name was written in curly script on the front, but there was no return address.  I flipped the envelope over and noticed it was sealed with a large lump of forest green wax.  I began to open it, hoping I would have time to read it before Potions, when a thought suddenly rushed into my mind.  Dammit, I had left my homework back in the dorm room!  I tossed the letter and the rest of my things into my bag as I climbed up from the table.

            "Where are you going, Alicia?" asked Katie, taking a pause from shouting out the letters to Ron's name in unison with the rest of the table.  

            "Forgot my bloody homework for Potions.  It's sitting on my bed.  I've gotta run, or I'll be late."  I waved to her as I walked out of the dining hall.  I heard a roar of applause over my shoulder, and turned to see Fred and George doing back handsprings in a circle around a very overwhelmed looking Ron.  I grinned and shook my head before hurrying off to get my homework.

*****************************************  
  


            The day zipped by in a whirlwind of activity.  In between classes, practice with our new keeper, and homework, I completely forgot about the letter.  By the time I remembered it, it was late at night, and I was lying under my covers, shutting my eyes, and just about to drift off to sleep.  However, my subconscious, never one to let me rest, slammed the letter into the forefront of my mind, waking me up with the force of a proverbial freight train.  I debated the merits of getting out of my comfy bed for a few minutes before deciding that my eyes simply would not close until I knew the contents of that envelope.  

            I crept out of bed as silently as possible so as not to wake Katie or Angelina.  Grabbing my bag, I tiptoed down the stairs to the common room, which I found abandoned, lit only by the faint light of the dying fire.  I pulled a chair close to the fireplace so I could have enough light to read by.  I pulled the envelope from my bag, and, for the second time that day, stared at the outside.  After a moment of hesitation, I finally opened it up, and shook the contents of it out onto the footstool in front of me.  Two pieces of parchment slid out of the envelope.  One was smaller, about the size of a certificate.  The other seemed to be a letter, as it was folded into thirds.  I picked up the letter and opened it.

            __

_            Dear Ms. Spinnet,_

_                        Congratulations!  This letter is your official invitation to a world of endless opportunity.  We here at Lux Et Veritas Corporation are continuously searching for candidates for various jobs at our company.  We have been tracking your academic records and are pleased to say that a person of your caliber and intelligence is exactly what our company desires in an employee.  Therefore, we would like to invite you to a preliminary "get to know you" session to be held this Saturday, September 14th at the Prancing Manticore Restaurant, located in Hogsmeade Village.  This will be an excellent opportunity not only for a representative from our Hiring Division to interview you, but also for you to receive answers to any questions you might have._

_                        Our company has been in the business of providing security to wizards and witches since the year 1281.  Countless citizens of the magical community depend on our services on a daily basis – Ministry of Magic employees, top business executives, and even quidditch players have all been clients of ours over the years.  Especially in these uncertain times, more and more people are finding advantages in the feeling of security and stability in their daily lives._

_                        Although we would never want to capitalize on the fear of others, it is indeed true that because of the recent course of events in the magical community, business has been distinctly higher.  There has never been a better time to become a member of the Lux Et Veritas family.  We can offer you not only a highly competitive salary, but many attractive benefits as well.  We hope you will consider becoming a member of our family._

_                        Again, if you are interested, I ask you to please come to the Prancing Manticore promptly at eleven o' clock on the 14th.  To further entice you to explore opportunities with our company, you will find enclosed in this envelope a certificate for five galleons, redeemable upon meeting with our representative.  This money does not entail any sort of obligation; if after hearing more about our company you find yourself wishing to pursue a different path, the five galleons is still yours.  There is no need to owl any sort of reply; if you choose to show up we will be delighted, if not, we will understand.  We also request that since this is a highly exclusive selection process, you not inform others of this job opportunity.  We prefer to contact potential employees rather than having them inquire with us._

_            Best Wishes,_

            Miranda Lafayette 

_            Hiring Division, Lux Et Veritas Corporation_

I read the letter three times before I sat back in the chair and tried to figure out what to do.  I searched my mind for anything I had ever heard having to do with Lux Et Veritas.  I couldn't think of a single person that I knew that worked for them; then again, they seemed to be a pretty selective, secretive sort of operation.  Security?  What kind of security?  And why would they want me?  I had seen ministry bodyguards before, and I certainly didn't fit the physical characteristics for that job.  What kind of company would go out of their way to request someone like me?

            I glanced at my wristwatch.  It was nearly two o' clock in the morning, and I still had to study for my Charms quiz before breakfast tomorrow.  I decided to go to bed and sleep on the letter.  After all, it was only Monday.  Saturday was eons away.  I'd think about it, maybe show it to my friends, and then decide what to do.  Feeling slightly relieved, I picked up the pieces of paper and went up to my room.  I tossed the letter on my bedside table and settled down to fall asleep.  A few minutes later, however, I got up and slipped the letter into my trunk.  No reason to let Katie or Angelina accidentally see it.  After all, they might make a big deal about it.  I mean, for all I knew, I might even throw the letter away and not even go to Hogsmeade on Saturday.  There was just no need to worry them, I thought as I drifted off to sleep.  

*******************************************

            "So you're sick then.  And you really don't feel well enough to attend practice?"  Angelina's glare was currently competing with that of a Hippogriff for intensity.  

            "Uh, yeah, that's about it," I said, trying to sound ill.  "I mean, nothing serious enough that I would have to go see Madame Pomfrey, but, you know, slightly under the weather…"

            Angelina frowned.  Come on, Angelina, I pleaded silently.  Just don't put up a big fuss.

            "What are your symptoms like?"

            Honestly, what was she, my mum?

            "Look, if you really must know… Well, it's, uh, feminine problems.  You know, that time of the month and all…" I shifted my position slightly on the couch and tried to convey an expression of pain.

            Angelina sighed.  "Alright, we'll practice without you.  Rest up and feel better, because I'll be expecting you there tomorrow at ten o' clock sharp for a full day practice.  So get some homework done because I'm not going to accept any excuses.  And that goes for the rest of you as well," she snarled, turning her attention towards the rest of the team before stomping out of the common room with a flourish.

            "Hey, Fred, is it her time of the month too?" whispered Ron, as the portrait swung closed behind Angelina.

            "Not unless I did something wrong last night, no," responded Fred.  His comment solicited a chorus of "ews" from not only me but also from the rest of the team, minus George, who were positioned around the couch I was stretched out on.

            "Well, we'd better head out to the pitch," said Katie, standing up and grabbing her broom.  "No sense in getting Angelina any more upset than she is now.  Feel better, Alicia."  

            "Thanks!" I called, watching everyone file out of the portrait hole.  I waited a moment until I was sure they weren't coming back, and then removed my bathrobe, revealing my khakis and blouse underneath.  I grabbed my cloak from where I had stuffed it under a couch cushion, and quickly put it on.  I had already drawn the curtains closed around my bed, so hopefully if anyone came back to check on me, they would think that I was asleep.  I patted my pocket to check that the letter and certificate were still there, and then took a deep breath to steady myself.

            "Come on Spinnet," I muttered.  "You can do this."  With one last furtive glance around the deserted common room, I descended through the portrait hall and began to head towards the castle doors.

            I was on my second to last staircase when I heard my name being shouted loud enough to alert the entire quidditch pitch to my presence.

            "Alicia!  Hold up!"  I turned around to see George jogging down the stairs to catch me.  Dammit, dammit, dammit.  The one time I actually didn't want to see him, he shows up.

            "You heading to practice, too?  I swear, I thought Umbridge was never going to let me out of detention… I had to polish every one of those stupid kitten plates, although she told me next time it would be worse, whatever that means.  Good thing I slipped a pack of dungbombs into her drawer.  Those things will give her a shock soon enough."

"George –"

"I mean, there's detention, and then there's just being a bitch!  I mean detention!  On a Saturday morning!  I'm glad I put a canary cream in her candy box.  And Angelina's not much better, you know, making us practice on a Hogsmeade weekend."

            "George – "

            "But, as long as we're going to practice, might as well be a nice day for it.  Hey, if you want to wait for me, I just have to change into my practice clothes; I can't believe Umbridge made me wear my uniform to this stupid thing.  Wait a second.  What are you wearing?  And why aren't you at practice?  Where's everyone else?"  

            "Well, maybe if you let me get a word in edgewise, I could answer some of those questions, Weasley," I said, pointedly.  George rolled his eyes but remained silent.

            "Look, George…" I bit my lip, trying to think how to best handle this situation.  "I need to ask you a favor."

            George regarded me suspiciously.  "What kind of a favor?"

            "Well…  I kind of lied to Angelina and told her I was sick.  But wait!"  George opened his mouth to speak, and I hurried to continue.  "Look, ordinarily I wouldn't.  But I got offered a job interview.  I'm supposed to meet this lady at the Prancing Manticore today at eleven, and they sent me a letter saying how they want me to work for them, and well, I just really want to go."  I looked up hopefully at George.

            He frowned.  "Did you tell Katie?"

            "No."

            "Lee?"

            "Well – no."

            George sighed.  "And I suppose I can assume that Fred, Ron, and Harry weren't let in on the secret either.  Alicia, I really don't want to lie to them… why didn't you tell anyone?  I mean, you wouldn't have even told me if we hadn't run into each other."

            "But you don't even have to lie!  No one is going to ask you if you ran into me on your way from detention to the quidditch pitch.  As far as the team is concerned, I'm sleeping in my bed right now.  So you don't have to say anything, period.  And I know I should have told someone, but I just didn't want to get anyone else's hopes up, let alone my own.  I probably won't even get the job, so what's the point of making a big deal over it?"

            George shook his head.  "I still don't know.  Isn't it a little unusual for companies to recruit like this?  I know that Hogwarts hosts a big job fair near the end of the year for the seventh years and all of the companies send representatives.  This sounds kind of funny."

            I let out an exasperated sigh.  "George, I'm not exactly asking for your permission.  Just don't tell anyone you saw me and we'll all be good.  I'm sure this company just likes to be a little different in the way they hire.  I'll be back in a few hours, and they probably won't hire me anyway.  And even if they want to hire me, or invite me back, or whatever, it won't be for a while!  I've still got nine months until I graduate!  I'm just trying to check out a career!"

            George looked at me for a long moment, and then nodded.  "Okay.  Just be careful.  And tell me what happens when you get back."

            "You're the best, George," I said, giving him an impromptu hug.

            "And damn sexy, to boot," he replied, patting my head.  I rolled my eyes, and he sent me the trademark Weasley grin.  I gave him a final squeeze before turning and jogging down the rest of the stairs towards the castle doors.  I stepped outside and began to walk briskly towards Hogsmeade.  I could feel the butterflies pounding in my stomach with almost the same amount of intensity that the wind was whipping at my face.  I glanced at my watch, and then began to walk at a faster pace.  The last thing I wanted was to be late.

            As I arrived on the main street of Hogsmeade, I slowed down to try to locate the Prancing Manticore.  I had asked a Ravenclaw girl in my Charms class if she had ever heard of it, and she had told me that it was a little past the Post Office on the left hand side of the street.

            Sure enough, before long I was standing in front of a building that was – well, the word that kept popping into my head was _dignified_.  It was a very dignified building.  A wooden sign hung above the door depicting a Manticore that was most definitely prancing.  I took a slow, and hopefully steadying breath, and pushed open the door.

*******************************************

You're all going to kill me; I can just feel it coming.  First, I don't update in forever.  Then, just as my story begins to show some semblance of having a plot, I leave you in the middle with a cliffhanger!  Please don't hunt me down!  I already have about half of the next chapter written, so soon enough you'll know what Alicia sees as she enters the Prancing Manticore.  In the mean time, I'm trying something a little new (and perhaps a little dumb…).  I'm going to try to include, from now on, at the end of each of my chapters, a fic that I feel should be highly recommended – actually, two fics; one Harry Potter and one "other."  Any fic that I plug here (or anything on my favorites list) is good enough to make me go WOW.  So while you're waiting for me to get my lazy butt in gear, here is some stuff to try out:

Old Faces, New Tricks by Jagged Epiphany.  

First of all, I doubt that there is anyone out there reading G/A who hasn't read this fic.  In this story, my favorite G/A author follows Alicia, the twins, Lee, Katie, and Angelina through all seven years at Hogwarts.  It's a massive story (and it's still not done!  Yay!  More to look forward to!) but once you start reading it you can easily read the whole thing and not realize you have been staring at your screen for hours.  She is the master of all that is George and Alicia; she blends the perfect amount of wit and story into an amazing epic.  She inspired me to write this ship, and you won't find a better Alicia voice anywhere on ff.net.  Oh, and if you're like me, and you've read every chapter of it a billion times already, check out her Alicia/Harry and Alicia/Draco stories.  I know they sound like odd ships, but believe me; they are well worth the read.

Official Buffy and Angel Fanfic University (OBAFU) by Honor H.  

This is a Buffy fic, if you couldn't guess by the title, and is one of my top ten Buffy fics ever.  The concept: What if there was a place where Buffy fic writers were required to attend school, and learn how to write good stories (and if you've spent as much time reading Buffy fic as I have, you know that good stories can be few and far between)?  And what if the teachers were characters from the Buffy/Angel fandom?  That's right, students attend fight classes with Buffy and Giles, do character studies with Willow and Xander, and if they get into trouble, attend Kennedy's Boot Camp for Maggots.  Plus there are hordes of mini trolls roaming the campus (Buffie, Xandre, Spyke, and my personal favorites, Anger and Damn), the risk of becoming a vampire, and tours of Sunnydale run by the Buffybot herself.  An amazing, humorous, and highly enjoyable story.  Don't be put off by the main character, Carrie, being an OC – not only is she the farthest thing from being a Mary Sue, but the author actually hints at a romance between her and a canon character that is both believable and easy to read.  In other words, I could ramble for hours about how good this is, but hey, what are you doing still reading this?  Go read her story!  But first…

REVIEW!!

Please?

Love,

Betsy


	7. Prancing Manticores and Babbling Beaters

Disclaimer: JK owns the Potterverse.  I only dabble in it.

A/N:  Lots of stuff to say at the end, so I won't bother you now.  

            The interior of the Prancing Manticore reminded me of the one time I had visited my aunt Matilda when I was eight.  She lived in France, and the interior of her house was dark, formal, and smelled like leather and musky perfume.  Aunt Matilda would adore this place, I thought, stepping through the entry way and letting the door close behind me.  The walls were covered in a dark green tapestry print, lit every few meters by torches.  I couldn't see any tables like there were in a traditional restaurant.  Instead, the walls were lined with massive booths, each looking like they could easily seat twenty people.  Thick, mahogany panels separated the booths guaranteeing that no one could spy on anyone else's business, I supposed.  Large, glass covered tables centered each booth, and I could see a few wizards eating stew and looking over business parchments at the booth nearest to the reception area.  I couldn't hear a word they were saying, however, and I wondered idly if the booths contained some sort of soundproofing charm.  In the center of the room, there was a large fire seemingly floating in midair.  Occasionally it would flash blue as a waiter would pop out of the flames and attend to a table.  When the waiters re-entered the fire, it would once again change to blue.

            Hesitantly, I stepped towards a desk that was directly in front of me.  I could see a large, heavy looking book on top.  It lay open, but there appeared to be nothing written on the pages.  A vat of ink, an eagle feather quill, and a small bell were the only other things on the desk.  As I began to walk around the desk, figuring that I should seat myself, a sign popped into the thin air in front of me, blocking my path.  I stopped and read the carefully lettered script:

If host is not at desk, please ring bell.  Our staff will be happy to assist you.

Almost as soon as I was done reading it, the sign moved forward as if to push me back to the desk.  Alarmed, I hurriedly retreated a few steps back.  Immediately, the sign vanished.  I took a last look around, hoping someone would see me.  Finally, I gave in and rang the bell.

            I was expecting a ringing, a chime, or something, but the bell emitted no sound even though I was sure I had pressed it quite firmly.  I frowned.  Before I could decide whether or not to hit it again, I heard a _whoosh_ sound from the center of the room.  I looked up and saw the fire suddenly change from golden flames to a bluish hue.  A man emerged from the flames and began to walk towards the desk.  Behind him, I could see that the fire had reverted back to its previous color.  As he approached, I could see he was wearing smart looking black robes with a golden manticore stitched on the upper left hand side. 

            "Name please?"  The man had reached the desk, and was looking at me expectantly, holding the quill in ready position above the book.

            "Uh – Alicia.  Alicia Spinnet."  I watched as he tapped the quill with his finger so that a drop of ink fell from the tip.  Instantly, the ink spread all over the page, forming words and numbers.

            "Ah, yes.  Miss Spinnet."  The quill scratched the parchment as he wrote something at the bottom of the page.  "Welcome to the Prancing Manticore.  My name is Henry, and I will be assisting you today.  The other half of your party should be arriving shortly, but in the meantime I would be delighted to seat you.  Now, how did you arrive?"  He smiled at me, the quill once again poised in the air.

            I stared at him.  "Arrive?"

            "Did you arrive today by broomstick, Floo, or apparition?  If you arrived by broomstick, our valet will be happy to park it for you.  If you arrived by Floo, feel free to enjoy a ride "on us" back to your original destination, or wherever your next stop may be.  And if you apparated, just say the word and we'll provide you with any comfort you wish for your dissipation.  Here at the Prancing Manticore, we pride ourselves on being a full service establishment."  Henry said all of this very fast, and then gave me that same expectant smile.

            "Actually, I walked."  I bit my lip, wondering why I felt so embarrassed.

            "Walked?"  The smile was slowly fading from Henry's face.

            "Well, I go to Hogwarts, and, you know, and actually, I'm not of age yet, but even if I was we're not allowed to apparate while school is in session…"

            Henry looked mildly flustered, as if his training manual had in no way prepared him for this.  He blinked a few times, and then suddenly began to smile again.

            "No worries, Miss Spinnet.  We cater to all sorts of needs here at the Prancing Manticore.  I will simply mark you down as having arrived by Floo.  This way, any time you need a Floo transportation from here to anywhere in England, feel free to come here and enjoy a trip for free.  Simply mention your name to whomever is running the reception that day, and they will make all the necessary arrangements.  Is that satisfactory with you?"

            "That's – that's wonderful.  Thank you."  I tried to smile at Henry; still not sure what exactly to make of what was going on.

            "Excellent."  Henry made a final mark in the book before raising the quill and tapping it for a second time.  The drop of ink hit, the page wiped clean, and Henry closed the book with a flourish.  He set down the quill and picked up two menus, which I could have sworn hadn't been there a moment ago.

            "If you would follow me right this way, Miss Spinnet."  I followed Henri to one of the booths.  I sat, feeling rather awkward.

            "Could I start you off with something to drink?"

            "Uh – water would be fine."  Henri smiled.  With a flourish, he withdrew a wand from inside his robes.  He tapped the edge of the glass in front of me, and a clear jet of water began to stream from his wand.  Once the glass was nearly full, he swished the wand, and the water abruptly stopped.

            "Thank you," I said, trying to sound dignified.  Henri simply smiled and handed me a menu.  With a swish of his robes, he was gone, headed back to the fire.

            Cautiously, I opened my menu.  As I scanned the list of dishes, I felt myself beginning to panic.  How was I supposed to order if I couldn't understand any of the words on the menu?

            "Alicia Spinnet?"  I looked up.  A tall, pale woman was standing in front of the table.  I nodded, and started to get up.

            "Oh, no.  Please, stay seated.  I apologize for my lateness.  I'm the representative for Lux Et Veritas.  My name is Lilah Morgan."  She sat at down in the booth, extending her hand across the table as she did so.

            "Nice to meet you, Ms. Morgan."

            "Oh, please.  Call me Lilah."  She smiled at me in a way that implied that if I called her Lilah, I probably wouldn't wake up the next morning.  As I began to feel fear mixing in the panic, something clicked in my mind.  This was what my vision had been about.  Come on, Spinnet, I tried to assure myself.  Another false-alarm vision.  This woman may be intimidating, but she's perfectly nice.  I took a deep breath, and gave her a shaky smile in return.

            "Well, how about we order before we talk business?"  She gave a little laugh, and then began to study her menu.  I tried to look at my menu as well, but I found that I couldn't help looking at her.  I realized that she was at least Angelina's height, maybe even taller.  She had brown hair that was highlighted with streaks of blonde, cut in a style that just approached her shoulders.  She was wearing plain navy blue robes, and I could see a type of business suit underneath.  She looked – well, she looked like a woman that I wouldn't want to cross.

            "Are you ready to order?"

            I jumped about a foot.  I hadn't realized that Henri had come back, and was now standing expectantly at the side of the table.

            "I'll have the Caesar salad."  Lilah smiled, handing her menu to Henri.

            "I'll – I'll have the same," I said, also surrendering my menu.  I wondered where on the menu she had gotten Caesar salad since the entire thing appeared to be written in French.  Henri smiled and gave both of us a slight bow.  As he left, Lilah reached over to her briefcase and withdrew a plain folder.  She slid it across the table towards me.  I placed my hand on the top, not sure whether or not I should open it.

            "I thought that I'd give you a general overview of our company, and then when I'm done, I'll be happy to answer any of your questions.  That folder there is – well, I'll get to that later."  She shot me another slightly terrifying smile before continuing.

            "As you probably gathered from our letter, Lux Et Veritas is a security company.  Now, I don't mean security like a Ministry bodyguard.  After all, Alicia, you and I aren't really the type for that sort of work, are we?"

            I smiled, trying to look as if I was enjoying the joke, rather than wondering if she had read my mind.  "No, Ms. Morgan.  Not at all."

            "No, at our corporation, we specialize in a different sort of security.  You see, Alicia, we want employees like you.  Employees who are special."  She gave me a pointed stare.  I squirmed slightly, feeling as if this were some sort of test."

            "Ms. Morgan, I don't know what you saw on my academic records, but my grades really aren't that –"

            "We don't care about academics, Alicia.  We care about other things."

            Suddenly, I got it.  "You mean my visions?"

            I was rewarded by a smile.  "Exactly, Alicia.  You may not know it, but every time you have a vision, magical sensors at our headquarters go wild.  There are very few people with your gift, Alicia, and we employ most of them.  You see, when you get a vision, you don't expect it.  It comes at a random time, and you don't know what it will be about, or who, or even if you know the person in the vision.  In other words, you don't control them, they control you.  Is that right?"

            I nodded.  

            "Well, we'd like to change that.  With our help, we believe that you can control the subjects of your visions, and the times at which you get them.  And then, in turn, you can help us.  You see, our clients like to know what will happen to them.  Not detail for detail, of course; free will does exist, after all.  But all the big things, Alicia, those were set down long before either you or I were around.  And those big things are what we like to be ready for."

            I swallowed, trying to take in the huge amount of information that had just been given to me.  "I think I understand what I'm saying.  But how do I control my visions?"

            She smiled at me.  "Well, there are several ways.  But we're going to start you off slow.  You see, Alicia, we would like to employ you after you graduate from Hogwarts.  However, we would like to start you as a full time employee.  I'm sure you would like that, as well.  If you would open the folder, Alicia, the first piece of paper has a number written on it.  This is the amount that we would be offering you as an initial salary."

            I opened the folder, and seeing the number on the page, I couldn't help letting out a small gasp.  Lilah smiled.  

            "We feel that it is a generous offer.  You see, Alicia, we don't want to train you after you graduate.  We want to train you now."

            "I'm flattered.  Believe me, I'm really flattered.  But I don't think I can drop out of school."

            Lilah laughed.  "Of course not, Alicia.  We want you to finish your education.  What we would want you to do this year is a few practice assignments.  Go ahead and flip to the next sheet in the folder."  

            I picked up the next page in the folder.  It was covered with tiny symbols that had absolutely zero meaning to me.  Puzzled, I looked up at Lilah.

            "What you are looking at, Alicia, is a wand print.  A wand print is even more distinctive than a fingerprint.  Each wizard's wand print is completely unique.  Therefore, when you look at a wand print, you can only have a vision about the wizard whose wand it is from.  So.  Now for a little test."  She paused, noticing the look on my face.  "Don't worry, Alicia.  You should pass this with flying colors.  Here's what I want you to do.  I want you to study the wand print as closely as you can.  If this works, you should get a vision within a few minutes.

            I took a deep breath, and stared closely at the little lines and squiggles.  Come on, I told myself.  Concentrate.  Concentrate.  Concen –

            _a man on a corner black robe blonde hair tall sign MAPLEWOOD other man coming _

Gasping, I jerked my head up.  Lilah nudged my glass of water towards me.

            "Here.  Take a drink.  It's a little jarring the first time you do it that way."

            I nodded and sipped my water, trying to calm my nerves.

            "Whenever you're ready, tell me what you saw."

            I took another sip of water before responding.  "It was all kind of fast, and kind of blurry.  But there was a man.  He was wearing a black robe, and he had very blonde hair.  He was standing on a street corner.  Um, the street had a sign on top that said Maplewood.  Oh, and another man was coming towards him."

            Lilah was recording down everything I had said with a large quill.  "Perfect.  Now, if you could just pass me that wand print."  I slid the piece of paper across the table to her.  She glanced at it for a moment, and then set it down, smiling brightly.

            "Brilliant, Alicia, absolutely brilliant.  The blonde man you saw in that vision is actually one of our employees.  We took a wand print from him, and he was instructed to stand on the corner of Maplewood at one 'o clock this afternoon.  Alicia, right now it's only quarter past twelve.  You saw a vision of his future."

            "I – oh, wow.  Wow."  I couldn't help smiling.  This – this was just cool.  I was still grinning when Henri appeared next to the table, and set down two Caesar salads in front of us.  I picked up my fork, and then set it down again.

            "So you're telling me that I get paid to do that?"

            Lilah laughed.  "Well, it's a little more complicated than that.  But initially, yes.  We'll send you wand prints, probably at a rate of about two to three a week.  Whenever it's convenient to you, you simply read them.  You write down what you see, owl it off to us, and you receive compensation in the mail.  Speaking of which."  She once again rummaged through her briefcase, and preceded to hand me a small drawstring bag.  I shook it slightly and heard a jingling sound from the inside.

            "There are your five galleons, Alicia.  At Lux Et Veritas, we keep our promises."

            "Thank you."  I still couldn't stop smiling.

            "You're welcome, Alicia.  But I need to make something very clear to you.  We expect to receive from our employees exactly what we give to them.  We keep our promises to you, Alicia.  That means that it is imperative that you keep all of your promises to us.  If for some reason you decided not to do a job for us, or lie about it, or try to sabotage it in any way…  well, you need to understand that we don't take very kindly to that sort of thing.  You can expect more than a pay cut for that sort of stunt.  If you try to cross us, Alicia, I _promise_ that we will find out."

            Ok, hands down, Lilah was officially the most terrifying woman I had met in my entire life.

            "I would never think of doing something like that."  I gulped, hoping that she believed me.  Lilah's icy gaze quickly gave way into a smile.

            "Of course you wouldn't!  I'm sorry, Alicia.  I didn't mean to frighten you there, but we're required to inform all employees of our policies.  Now, I've got to run, but you stay hear as long as you want and enjoy that salad.  Don't worry about the bill; it's already taken care of.  Now, in that folder is an overview of everything that I've told you, plus a sheet informing you how much you'll be paid per wand print reading.  If you have any questions, just go ahead and send me an owl.  And welcome on board, Alicia.  We at Lux Et Veritas are very excited to have you."

********************************

            Later that night, sitting in the common room, I was still somewhere on cloud nine.  I was laying on one of the couches, grinning like an idiot, when the team began to climb through the portrait whole.  I quickly wiped the smile off of my face and tried to look like I was in great pain.

            "I was wondering about you guys.  I'm not judging, Angelina, but ten hours seems a little excessive."

            "If I ever make you practice for ten hours, you can rename me Oliver Wood."  Angelina perched herself on the arm of the sofa.  She seemed to be in a considerably better mood than she had been this morning.

            "We practiced for about three hours," said Ron, collapsing in an armchair.  "Then we broke for lunch –"

            "So that we would be well rested and fed for Angie's two hour strategy discussion," said Fred, grinning and nudging Angelina in the side.  Off of her glare, however, he quickly amended.  "It's out of love, honey.  Always out of love."  Angelina, along with the rest of us, rolled her eyes.

            "Well, that's about six hours.  What about the other four?"  I propped myself up on my elbows              

            "Actually, we wandered down to Hogsmeade."  Katie had managed to squeeze herself into the space between my feet and the arm of the sofa.  "George's idea."

            "Really?  Hogsmeade?  How interesting."  I stared at George, but he turned away, refusing to catch my eye.  Before I could say anything else, Angelina stood up.

            "Well, I'd love to fill you in, Al, but before I do anything, I need to shower.  I reek."  A chorus of "yeahs" and "me toos" followed Angelina's pronouncement.  The rest of the team stood and began to head towards the dorm rooms, but I managed to grab onto a handful of George's robes as he passed

            "Oh no you don't."  George looked at me for a moment, and then sighed, sitting on the arm of the couch.  I sat up and turned to face him.

            "So.  You just randomly decided that Hogsmeade was the hip and happening place to be?"

            "I'll have you know that I wanted to go to Hogsmeade because… because I wanted to write a poem."  George gave me a pointed glance and folded his arms across his chest.  I snorted.

            "Really.  And what, may I ask, did George Weasley write a poem about?"

            "Um – flowers."

            I pushed aside a mental image of George prancing through a field of flowers, sprouting poetry as he skipped and sang.  Fighting back a giggle, I forced myself to adapt a stern tone.  "And, of course, flowers can only be found in Hogsmeade."

            "Well, I needed the special flowers, you see, and of course there's the, uh, special poetry quills that one can buy in Hogsmeade, and…" George trailed off, looking rather put out.  "Are you actually going to make me say that I went to Hogsmeade to check up on you?"  

            "Because obviously I needed checking up on."  

            George rolled his eyes.  "So kill me, Alicia, I was worried.  I just wanted to make sure that you were ok."

            "Well, as annoyed as I am… I guess I'm also sort of touched.  But you're a freak.  Just so you know."  I smiled at George, trying to kill of the sudden amounts of butterflies that were dancing in my stomach.

            "I think that there was a thank you somewhere in there.  So I'll just say you're welcome."  He elbowed me in the side, and I retailed in like kind.

            "So.  Did you get the job?"

            I paused for a moment.  "No.  No, they said that I wasn't exactly what they were looking for."  

            George patted me on the shoulder.  "Better luck next time, right?"

            Relieved that he had bought it, I nodded.  George shifted his position and leaned in slightly towards me.  "Well, you didn't get the job.  But I know what you did get today."

            I frowned.  "What?"

            "Tickled."  Before I could make sense of what he had just said, George had launched himself on top of me and was tickling me mercilessly.  I squealed.

            "George Weasley, you are so dead!  Stop!  I am going to bloody murder you!"  Giggling uncontrollably, I managed to roll us off of the couch and onto the floor.  As we continued to wrestle on the common room floor, I decided that this was the best day I'd had in a very long time.

A/N:  Thought I'd cover a few things:

This fic is going to more or less be OotP compatible.  I'm not going to go back and edit chapters, so any inconsistencies in my earlier chapters are going to remain.  Also, in my story, Katie is the same age as everyone else.  I can sense that all of you were dying to know that.

Also, some of you may recognize the name Lilah Morgan.  She was an evil lawyer on the show Angel.  While originally I was just going to use her name and appearance, I found myself writing all of her dialogue in, well, her voice.  If you want to know how I visualize Lilah, check out any episode of Angel from seasons three or four.

To those of you who asked:  Lux Et Veritas is a Latin phrase that translates to Light and Truth.  Make of that what you will.

And now it's time for… fic recommendations!  First, a Harry Potter fic:

The Amazing Adventures of Professor Barney McKnob, by Neuri.  Don't be fooled by the title – it's a MWPP fic, and probably the best one I've ever read.  She nails the character voices, and her Marauders are actually multi-dimensional, a very difficult thing to find in MWPP fics.  It's a complete mystery to me why she doesn't have hundreds of reviews for this fic.

Now…  the non Harry Potter fic:

The Spike Spinoff Showcase, by… well, by me.  Ahem.  Yes, I'm shamelessly promoting one of my own fics here.  But I swear, people, it's good.  Imagine if Spike the vampire (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) got his own spinoff.  Watch as I blast Spike, Buffy, Angel, Riley, and every tired plot device under the sun.  Spike haters, Spike lovers, come one come all.  Guaranteed or your money back.

Reviewers!

**Morgana Wenlock**:  Hopefully it's not just a random love story, lol.  Thanks for your praise of Lee – I try to make him both a friend and a boyfriend.  Now, where's that update on your fic?  I'm on pins and needles!

**Dyrim123**:  Thanks.  I'm always happy to attract new readers!

**GryffinMiraur**:  Seriously, you telling me that Alicia is not a Mary Sue is the highest compliment I could ever hope for.  That is my biggest worry in writing this story.  Thanks for your emails as well.  I love chatting with fellow G/Aers.  (P.S.  Hey everyone, read her stuff!  She has soo much Alicia fic that everyone needs to read right now!  Go, I tell you!)

**Jagged Epiphany**:  Hey, reccing your fic was the least I could do.  You are the person who inspired me to write G/A, after all.  And thanks for the equally lovely reccomendation in Old Faces, New Tricks.  So… ahem… you owe me a chapter!

**ShadowChik**:  Hee, you're the first person to describe my story as "most awesome."  Thanks!

**Cute-crazy-chick1**:  Flattering my ego?  Muchos chocolate frogs for you!

**Tigger-180**:  You ask, I produce.  Here's a whole new chapter!

**Cecilia Orechio**:  Falling out of your chair?  I'd hate for you to have medical problems on account of me not updating!  Lol.  Yeah, I have big plans for Alicia's little secret.  Please email me when you post your next fic, I'm really looking forward to it!

**Neuri**:  Yeah, I spent waaaay too much time on the bio.  I'm glad you enjoyed it though.  I try to think of it as an excuse for my slow updates.  Thanks for your compliments about me writing in the first person.  I'm glad you think I've been successful; I think one of the hardest things about first person POV is not inserting too much of yourself in the character.  Oh yeah, and one more thing.  Could you please update your story?  Pretty please with sugar on top?

**Rachel**:  Sketch is definitely a good word to describe the folks at Lux Et Veritas.  Hope enjoyed reading about the meeting!

**Spyra**:  Quit making me blush!  Seriously, that was a VERY flattering review.  Plus, I love the term quidditch shipper.  That is now how I will officially refer to myself.

**Oliverwoodschic**:  Glad you found my story!  I hope the G/A content in this chapter was to your satisfaction.  Don't worry, I'll keep those two bumping into each other…

Um, I think that's it.  Please check out my shiny new profile… and oh yeah review!!!

Love,

Betsy


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